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from
The
by
Ernest Dichter
Psychology
of
Everyday
Living
1947
None of the much flaunted appeals of cigarette advertisers, such as superior taste and mildness,
induces us to become smokers or to choose one brand in preference to another. Despite the emphasis
put on such qualities by advertisers, they are minor considerations. This is one of the first facts we
discovered when we asked several hundred people, from all walks of life, why they liked to smoke
cigarettes. Smoking is as much a psychological pleasure as it is a physiological satisfaction. As one
of our respondents explained: "It is not the taste that counts. It's that sense of satisfaction you get
from
a
cigarette
that
you
can't
get
from
anything
else."
Smoking is Fun
What is the nature of this psychological pleasure? It can be traced to the universal desire for selfexpression. None of us ever completely outgrows his childhood. We are constantly hunting for the
carefree enjoyment we knew as children. As we grew older, we had to subordinate our pleasures to
work and to the necessity for unceasing effort. Smoking, for many of us, then, became a substitute for
our early habit of following the whims of the moment; it becomes a legitimate excuse for interrupting
work and snatching a moment of pleasure. "You sometimes get tired of working intensely," said an
accountant whom we interviewed, "and if you sit back for the length of a cigarette, you feel much
fresher afterwards. It's a peculiar thing, but I wouldn't think of just sitting back without a cigarette. I
guess
a
cigarette
somehow
gives
me
a
good
excuse."
Smoking is a Reward
Most of us are hungry for rewards. We want to be patted on the back. A cigarette is a reward that we
can give ourselves as often as we wish. When we have done anything well, for instance, we can
congratulate ourselves with a cigarette, which certifies, in effect, that we have been "good boys." We
can promise ourselves: "When I have finished this piece of work, when I have written the last page of
my report, I'll deserve a little fun. I'll have a cigarette."
The first and last cigarette in the day are especially significant rewards. The first one, smoked right
after breakfast, is a sort of anticipated recompense. The smoker has work to do, and he eases himself
into the day's activities as pleasantly as possible. He gives himself a little consolation prize in
advance, and at the same time manages to postpone the evil hour when he must begin his hard day's
work. The last cigarette of the day is like "closing a door." It is something quite definite. One smoker
explained: "I nearly always smoke a cigarette before going to bed. That finishes the day. I usually
turn the light out after I have smoked the last cigarette, and then turn over to sleep."
Smoking is often merely a conditioned reflex. Certain situations, such as coming out of the subway,
beginning and ending work, voluntary and involunatary interruptions of work, feelings of hunger, and
many others regulate the timetable of smoking. Often a smoker may not even want a cigarette
particularly, but he will see someone else take one and then he feels that he must have one, too.
While to many people smoking is fun, and a reward in itself, it more often accompanies other
pleasures. At meals, a cigarette is somewhat like another course. In general, smoking introduces a
holiday spirit into everyday living. It rounds out other forms of enjoyment and makes them one
hundred
per
cent
satisfactory.
face. They just puff it at you." Some men, when they want to appear to be aggressive, hold their
cigarettes with thumb and forefinger so that the glowing end shows toward the palm of the hand.
Often smokers will assume a pose, because they have found that it fits their personality best, or at
least they think so. A not too modest glamor girl revealed to us some of her "smoking secrets": "I
think it looks so much better to smoke with a holder. I studied that very carefully. Don't you think I'm
somewhat of a Latin type? It all really depends on what type you are.... I always have holders that are
long and dark. I think a long holder is somewhat like a big hat: it's alluring and 'don't dare come
close' at the same time."
While every smoker has to go through the motions of lighting and inhaling the smoke, the way in
which these acts are carried out varies according to his mood. The nervous smoker has a faster
smoking tempo than the relaxed one. The angry smoker blows the smoke in an aggressive way,
almost as if he were trying to blow somebody down. A smoker who is about to ask for a raise in
salary will press his lips tightly around the cigarette as if to gain courage by holding it that way.
"Smoking Helps Me Think"
The mind can concentrate best when all outside stimuli have been excluded. Smoking literally
provides a sort of "smoke screen" that helps to shut out distractions. This explains why many people
who were interviewed reported that they cannot think or write without a cigarette. They argued that
moderate smoking may even stimulate mental alertness. It gives us a focal point for our attention. It
also gives our hands something to do; otherwise they might make us self-conscious and interfere with
mental activity. On the other hand, our respondents admit that smoking too much may reduce their
efficiency.
Cigarettes Help Us to Relax
One shortcoming of our modern culture is the universal lack of adequate relaxation. Many of us not
only do not know how to relax, but do not take time to learn. Smoking helps us to relax because, like
music, it is rhythmic. Smoking gives us a legitimate excuse to linger a little longer after meals, to
stop work for a few minutes, to sit at home without doing anything that requires effort. Here is a
nostalgic comment contributed by a strong defender of smoking: "After a long day's work, to get
home and sit in a chair and stretch my legs 'way out, and then to sit back and just smoke a cigarette
and think of nothing, just blow the smoke in the air - that's what I like to do when I've had a pretty
tough day." The restful effect of moderate smoking explains why people working under great stress
use
more
tobacco.
"I Blow My Troubles Away"
In times of high tension, cigarettes provide relief, as indicated by the following typical comments of
one of our respondents: "When I have a problem, and it comes back and back, warningly saying,
'Well, what are you going to do about this?' a cigarette almost acts like a consolation. Somehow it
relieves the pressure on my chest. The feeling of relief is almost like what you feel in your chest after
you have cried because something has hurt you very much. Relaxing is not the right kind of word for
that feeling. It is like having been in a stuffy room for a long time and at last getting out for a deep
breath of air." That man's explanation comes very close to stating the scientific reason why smoking
brings relief. Worry, anxiety, depress us not only psychologically but also physiologically. When a
person feels depressed, the rhythm of his breathing becomes upset. A short and shallow breath creates
a heavy feeling in the chest. Smoking may relieve mental depression by forcing a rhythmic expansion
of the breast and thus restoring the normal pace of breathing. The "weight on the chest" is removed.
This connection between smoking and respiration accounts for the common expression, "Smoking
helps us to let off steam." When we are enraged, we breathe heavily. Smoking makes us breath more
steadily,
and
thus
calms
us
down.
they become identified with it. A guest who discovers that his host smokes the same brand considers
this a personal flattery. If a young lady changes to the brand of an admirer, he understands that he has
surely made an impression. Here is the experience of one young man, and his interpretation of it: "I
was very fond of a girl. She was giving a farewell party before leaving the country. I didn't have any
idea how I stood in her affection. The only clue was that at her party she had my brand of cigarettes. I
always felt that that was in deference to me." "My brand" has a special significance, as if it were a
part
of
the
smoker's
credo
and
personality.
A Package of Pleasure
A new pack of cigarettes gives one a pleasant feeling. A full, firm pack in the hand signifies that one
is provided for, and gives satisfaction, whereas an almost empty pack creates a feeling of want and
gives a decidely unpleasant impression. The empty pack gives us a feeling of real frustration and
deprivation.
During the seventeenth century, religious leaders and statesmen in many countries condemned the
use of tobacco. Smokers were excommunicated by the Church and some of them were actually
condemned to death and executed. But the habit of smoking spread rapidly all over the world. The
psychological pleasures derived proved much more powerful than religous, moral, and legal
persuasions. As in the case of the prohibition experiment in the United States, repressive measures
seem to have aroused a spirit of popular rebellion and helped to increase the use of tobacco.
If we consider all the pleasure and advatnages provided, in a most democratic and international
fashion, by this little white paper roll, we shall understand why it is difficult to destroy its power by
means of warnings, threats, or preachings. This pleasure miracle has so much to offer that we can
safely predict the cigarette is here to stay. Our psychological analysis is not intended as a eulogy of
the habit of smoking, but rather as an objective report on why people smoke cigarettes. Perhaps this
will seem more convincing if we reveal a personal secret: We ourselves do not smoke at all. We may
be missing a great deal.